To Be Inspired or Run
by StormWolf10
Summary: When the Doctor leaves Rose for a weekend with Jackie, he wasn't expecting anything to happen. However, when he receives a phone call from Jackie saying that Rose has gone missing, he soon realises that an old 'acquaintence' is back to hurt him...and Rose may be killed in the process
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Ok, new fic. This one is dedicated to the wonderful Bad Wolf Fiction, who said that if I wrote this fic, she'd write a sequel to Blast from the Past (check it out, it's awesome!). The title is taken from the Chameleon Circuit song 'The Sound of Drums' and this is set sometime in series 2.**

"You don't have to come," Rose told the Doctor, watching him wander around the TARDIS console.

The Doctor looked up at his young companion, only just managing to hide his relief.

"No?" he asked, frowning.

"No," Rose confirmed, smiling slightly "I know how mad you'll get stayin' in my Mum's flat for the night! You stay here. Actually, why not go off for a while? As long as you're back here for lunchtime tomorrow,"

The Doctor stared at Rose as she swung her rucksack onto her back, not believing his luck.

"I'll see you tomorrow then, yeah?" Rose asked, opening the TARDIS doors.

"Yeah," the Doctor replied quickly, startled out of his staring "yeah, I'll see you tomorrow. Call if you need me back sooner,"

And with that, the TARDIS door swung shut and the Doctor was left alone.

**~StormWolf10~**

A tall, brown-haired man dressed in jeans and a hoodie weaved his way through the London shoppers. The golden fob watch slipped in his sweaty palm, and yet again his thumb toyed with the little catch, wondering whether to open it. Although, it had never worked anyway, and he had no idea why he carried it. He hated London, had never enjoyed being there. But now, homeless, he'd figured that it was the best place for him- there must be hundreds of homeless people in London, and that in itself might offer him some protection. He had nothing of value to sell, except for the mysterious fob watch, but for some reason he could never bring himself to sell it. The man hurried across the road and, as he hurriedly dodged an oncoming taxi, his thumb pressed down on the fob watch. It flipped open and a golden light erupted from it, heading straight into the man's mouth. As he inhaled the golden gas, his eyes widened and swirled with red and clue, the screams of the deceased echoing in his ears…

**~StormWolf10~**

"Watch where you're goin', mate!"

The man stumbled slightly as the angry Londoner yelled at him for bumping into him.

"Oh, shut it," the man sneered, stumbling off down the busy London street again.

Everything was clearer now, who he was, how he'd gotten here, the war, the Doctor, everything. The pounding in his head was still there, at the edge of his mind, but he didn't care. He had compiled his evidence, stolen some old technology (UNIT really did need to get better security than those stupid humans, he thought snidely) and all he had to do now was put his plan into action. All he cared about now was finding the Doctor. He could feel him, he was close. He could feel the TARDIS, and he knew that that meant he was close to finding the person he seeked. As he hurried through the London streets, the feeling of another Time Lord got stronger and stronger, almost overpowering his still-weak body. Eventually, he stumbled into a council estate- the Powell Estate, if the sign was anything to go by- and grinned. Oh, this was where he needed to be, where she was. If only he could find the apartment…And then he spotted it. Standing tall and blue in the middle of the courtyard. The Doctor's TARDIS. Ducking behind some bins, he hid and watched as a young blonde woman stepped out of the box and headed up to one of the nearby flats. As the TARDIS faded away, the man hurried across the courtyard, watching the woman knock on the door to one of the flats. A woman opened it and embraced her in a hug, the woman's mother he supposed, before ushering her inside. Flat number 48, Bucknall House.

"Got you," the man whispered, smirking.

**~StormWolf10~**

It was several hours before the woman reappeared. She hurried through the courtyard, heading towards the cluster of shops on the edge of the estate. Stepping out of the shadows, he followed her. It was very nearly dark now, the orange glow of the streetlamps reflecting off his face and casting shadows across the concrete. The woman stopped suddenly, and looked round, staring right at him.

"Umm, can I help you, mate?" she asked uncertainly, keeping her distance.

"Oh, you certainly can!" he sneered, smirking.

The woman audibly gulped.

"Look, mate, you don't look like you're from around here so I suggest you go home, yeah? The guys on this estate, well, they're predatory, won't like you hangin' out on 'their estate'." The woman told him.

"Predatory, eh?" he asked, grinning and stepping closer to the woman "Like a wolf?"

The woman's eyes went wide at that and took several moments before answering.

"Yeah, I suppose," she admitted, fear creeping into her voice.

He looked her up and down a few times before speaking again.  
"Oh, I can see why the Doctor picked you," he murmured, noticing the woman stiffening.

"Who are you?" she demanded "How do you know about the Doctor?"

"He and I are…acquaintances," he admitted, choosing his words carefully.

"He's not here," the woman told him quickly, beginning to back away again.

"Oh, I know. I watched him leave. It's not the Doctor I want. It's you, Rose Tyler," he announced, stepping closer and closer until Rose was backed against the wall, with no chance of escape.

Rose gasped at the mention of her name.

"How…How do you know me?" she asked.

"I'm a Time Lord, you stupid girl! It wasn't hard for me to track you down! You know, the Doctor's gotten lazy since he killed our people; didn't even bother erecting shields to stop me getting into his mind," he announced almost lazily.

"You…you can't be a Time Lord! The Doctor, he told me about the war, he said he was the last one, that he'd feel any other Time Lord…" Rose stuttered, not quite getting the words out properly.

He threw his head back, laughing loudly, although Rose struggled to see what was apparently so funny.

"Oh, you stupid, stupid ape! Like I said, the Doctor's gotten lazy. I put up mental shields in my mind, stopped him from detecting me. He wasn't looking for any other Time Lords and so he didn't feel me as I trampled through his precious mind! And I must say, Miss Tyler, some of the things you've done shocked even me; I never realised that humans were so stupid as to save your own father and believe it wouldn't alter time lines!"

Rose flinched at the mention of her father and the reapers. It wasn't an adventure she was particularly proud of.

"But Rose Tyler, you burned! _Oh_, how you burned! You burned with the whole of time and space inside of you, such raw, unharnessed power! You succeeded in doing something that even the Time Lords failed to do; when we looked into the time vortex, it was to be inspired, or run. But you, Rose Tyler, you became a _goddess_, a legend across the cosmos. There's something different about you, something special and unique. And you will be the one to help me bring the Doctor down," he said everything as if it was so obvious, that it was something everyone knew.

"Who are you? Why do you need me?" Rose asked quietly, pushing ineffectually at the man's chest, trying to push him away.

He ignored her first question, but seemed only too eager to answer her second.

"Because he loves you, Rose Tyler. That stupid, arrogant Doctor has gone and fallen in love with a _human_," he spat the last word out as if it were something found on the bottom of his shoe.

"He doesn't love me," Rose gasped out, her body still trapped between the brick wall and the man's body "we're just friends!"

Again, the man laughed, and Rose was beginning to question his sanity.

"Oh, but he does love you, Rose Tyler. He loves you so much that he'll do anything for you and he will always trust you. _You_ are the Doctor's _kryptonite_."

"What the hell does that mean? What are you planning to do with me?" Rose asked, struggling against the man as he began to haul her away.

"You, Miss Tyler, are going to become my ultimate weapon. You shall help me destroy the Doctor!" he cackled.

"No, I won't!" Rose yelled suddenly, finally managing to wrench herself from this madman's grip "You can't turn me against the Doctor!"

The man turned on her with such fury, such fire in his eyes that Rose found herself frozen to the spot. He dug in his pocket and extracted something from his pocket, and Rose recognised it as a vortex manipulator. The man punched some co-ordinates in before gripping Rose's wrist so tight that she swore his fingernails were drawing blood.

"You will do as I say!" the man spat "I am your Master!"

And before Rose could reply, there was a flash of light and the Powell estate was quiet once more…

**A/N 2: So, if you hadn't already guessed, any plotline to do with the Master in series 3 is ignored here. I was requested by Bad Wolf Fiction to write a fanfiction where the Master returns and intends to use Rose as a weapon against the Doctor :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Second chapter! Next chapter will probably be up next week. Read and Review**

Rose found herself in a dingy, damp-ridden building- an old abandoned house, if the bubbling wallpaper was anything to go by. She involuntarily shivered, and the Master was suddenly dragging her down the corridor and into one of the rooms. The floorboards creaked and groaned under their weight, and the Master shoved her hard to the floor. Rose fell awkwardly, and she was almost certain she'd be black and blue by the next morning. As the Master leant down over her, she scrabbled backwards across the floor.

"Let me go!" Rose managed to say, although it came out nowhere near as strong as she'd wanted it to.

The Master laughed, a low sinister sound.

"Oh, you won't be leaving anytime soon, Miss Tyler," he sneered, leaning in close.

Rose stiffened as the Master's breath tickled her face. He was closer than she felt comfortable with, but she supposed that the Master wasn't the kind of guy who cared much about her personal space.

"You won't get away with this, my Mum'll notice I'm missing soon!" Rose told him, a little more courage in her voice now, despite shivers running through her body.

"Like some stupid human is any threat to me!" the Master laughed.

"She'll phone the Doctor," Rose continued boldly.

"Your precious Doctor isn't coming for you. You're _mine_ now, Rose Tyler!" the Master yelled, gripping Rose's chin hard between his fingers.

"Get _off_ me!" Rose gasped, wrenching herself from the Master's grip "And I'm _not_ yours!"

"You, Rose Tyler, are _most definitely_ mine! I am your _Master_! Say it!"

The Master's voice was low and angry, and Rose wouldn't be surprised if he hit her. Jackie used to have a boyfriend like that once, when Rose was about eight, and he used to get like that. Needless to say, Jackie hadn't dated the guy for long.

"No!" Rose answered defiantly, regretting the word the moment it left her mouth.

"SAY IT!" The Master yelled suddenly, his expression consumed with rage.

Rose glared defiantly at him. Then suddenly, the Master drew his hand back and with a sharp '_crack'_, she was left holding her left cheek, a throbbing red handprint across the usually pale flesh.

"It seems that even with Goddess power, you can be extremely foolish. No matter, I'll just have to teach you a lesson or so…" the Master muttered, gripping Rose's face once more.

Then he slammed her head into the floorboards and stood, leaving the room.

**~StormWolf10~**

"What do you want with me?" Rose asked quietly, struggling slightly against the ropes that bound her to the chair.

Rose knew she had to be cautious around the Master, particularly after what had happened earlier. Her cheek still throbbed at the memory.

"As I told you before, Miss Tyler, you will help me destroy the Doctor. You are his kryptonite and you will be my ultimate weapon!" the Master announced, an evil glint in his eye and a smirk on his face.

Rose swallowed.

"How…How do you suppose to do that?" I'm not just gonna agree to turn on the Doctor, you know. He's my best friend," Rose countered, her voice wavering.

"I have my ways, Miss Tyler. Don't worry about that," the Master told her, pacing the room.

Rose could only really pick out the Master's silhouette, except for the few times his pacing took him through the pool of light the moon cast through the window. The rope binding her to the chair was far too tight, cutting the blood supply to her fingers off and rubbing the skin of her wrists raw, but she refused to make a fuss.

"Come on, Doctor," she whispered as the Master continued pacing the room.

**~StormWolf10~**

Rose had no idea what time it was, but she did know that all she wanted was to sleep. She figured that it must be the early hours of the morning, seeing as the Master had abducted her at just gone seven in the evening and they had been in this rotting old house for quite a few hours now. The Master had left the room some time ago, talking to someone in another room (how long had the other person been there? Who were they? Rose knew the Master would give her no answers), but he had left Rose bound to the chair. She had been so convinced that the Doctor would have gotten here by now, but she quickly convinced herself that he was probably sorting out a plan. Rose hoped that Jackie wasn't panicking too much, but she figured that she probably was. Sighing, she went back to staring at the mould-covered wallpaper that was falling off the opposite wall. Just as she was beginning to nod off to sleep, the Master strolled back into the room.

"So, Miss Tyler," the Master announced, smirking.

Rose didn't like the look in the Master's eyes.

"I think it's time to start your…_training_,"


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: New chapter! Read and Review please!**

The Doctor sat up suddenly, cracking his head on the underside of the TARDIS console. The phone was ringing, he was certain. Quickly pulling himself out of the pit, rubbing his aching head as he did so. Answering the phone, the Doctor was still confused.

"Hello? You've...Umm…You've reached the TARDIS," he announced uncertainly.

"Oh, thank god you answered!" Jackie announced loudly, relief evident in her voice.

"What's wrong, Jackie?" the Doctor asked, suddenly sensing that things must be bad if Jackie Tyler was phoning him voluntarily. Thinking about it, how did she even have the TARDIS' number? She wasn't using Rose's mobile, was she?

"Jackie, how did you get the TARDIS' number?" the Doctor asked, cutting into Jackie's rant.

"Rose gave it to me, you prawn!" Jackie answered indignantly, before continuing "But that's the problem; Rose went out to go get some chips from the chippy about two hours ago, and she still hasn't come back! I've called her, but she won't answer the call!"

"Wait! What?" the Doctor asked, shocked.

By now, he could hear that Jackie was panicking and, if the hitch in her voice was anything to go by, she was crying.

"Rose has gone, Doctor! Do you think it was aliens, or…?" Jackie trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.

"Hold on, Jackie," the Doctor told her calmly- how was he managing that? He was screaming inside- "I'll be there in a minute,"

He then reluctantly hung up the phone and hastened to set the co-ordinates for the Powell Estate.

**~StormWolf10~**

When the Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS, he saw that he had apparently landed in Rose's bedroom, as his eyes were assaulted by the bubblegum pink walls and duvet. The door suddenly bashed open, revealing a distraught, dishevelled Jackie Tyler, her hair tied up in a messy ponytail and her makeup smudged by the tear tracks marring her face.

"Jackie," the Doctor murmured, offering what he hoped was a supportive smile.

Instead of replying, Jackie rushed into the Time Lord's arms, and the Doctor patted her awkwardly on the back as she sobbed into his chest.

"Jackie," the Doctor piped up after a few moments "I need you to explain what happened,"

Jackie sniffed and pulled out of his embrace.

"I'll stick the kettle on," she muttered, leaving the room.

**~StormWolf10~**

It took Jackie roughly ten minutes to explain the events before Rose vanished. To say the Doctor was perplexed was an understatement; from what Jackie had said, there had been no prior arguments that would prompt Rose to wander off, no strange alien sightings and nothing strange about Rose herself.

"Did she have her TARDIS key on her, Jackie?" the Doctor asked, watching the woman carefully,

Jackie shrugged half-heartedly.

"I dunno, suppose so." Jackie replied dully "Won't make much difference though, will it?"

"I can see if the TARDIS can trace her key," the Doctor explained gently.

Almost as soon as he had spoken, the Doctor saw Jackie's eyes light up in unmistakable hope.

"You…You can do that?" Jackie asked quietly.

The Doctor nodded, and stood up, offering Jackie his hand. She took it and allowed him to pull her from the armchair.

"We can go down to the TARDIS now if you like, I can run the scan. Of course, you could also stay here if you want…" the Doctor was cut off as Jackie dragged him to the front door.

The pair hurried down the concrete stairs and out into the courtyard in silence. Jackie payed the confusing interior of the TARDIS no attention as she hurried up the ramp and the Doctor started the scan. There were another few minutes of long, uncomfortable silence before the monitor beeped and a series of circles and lines appeared on the scanner.

"Impossible!" the Doctor muttered.

"What? What is it?!" Jackie demanded "And what are all those squiggles?"

"Those squiggles, as you so eloquently put it, Jackie, are Gallifreyan. My native language." the Doctor explained "And, according to the scan, Rose has vanished!"

"Well, I know that, you plum!" Jackie retorted "That's why I phoned you! But where's she gone?"

"No, Jackie, I mean she's literally _vanished_! I've had the TARDIS search the entire surrounding galaxy for her, and she's just…_Gone_. Like she was never here!" the Doctor explained, frustrated.

He began pacing the control room, hands in his hair as he tugged at it.

"What do we do then?" Jackie asked.

She got no reply from the Time Lord.

"Doctor, what do we do?" Jackie repeated, hurrying to his side and laying a hand on his arm.

The Doctor looked down at Jackie, and saw the immense grief in her eyes.

"What do we do? What if we can't find her?" Jackie asked quietly.

"She has to be out there somewhere, Jackie," the Doctor replied softly "I can't lose her. I won't allow it to happen. I promise, I will bring her back safe!"

"But that scan couldn't even find her!" Jackie reminded him.

"Then I'll just have to keep looking, won't I?" the Doctor answered.

And, with that, Jackie Tyler found herself propelled from the strange blue box and out into the Powell Estate, the TARDIS already fading away.

"Bring her home safe, Doctor," she whispered in the empty air.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: New chapter! Just to let you know, there will be fifteen chapters in total :)**

Rose sighed in relief as she was untied from the chair. Her hands remained bound, and she was dragged to her feet, her head spinning from lack of sleep. The Master dragged her from the room, Rose stumbling as she forced the blood back into her feet. She had no idea where she was being taken to, but she hoped that the Doctor would find her soon; she didn't like the sound of this 'training' the Master wanted to put her through. As Rose was dragged down a flight of cold, damp concrete stairs, she realised they were heading to the cellar of this rotting house, and she shivered. The ground floor had been bad enough; she didn't want to think about what was waiting for her down here. As they reached the cellar, Rose gaped. It was filled with various chairs and beds, all of which looked like they were for a different type of torture. As she was forced into one of the chairs, a figure stepped out of the darkness, crossing the room to them.

"Hart, fetch me those chains from the cupboard," the Master commanded, not looking away from Rose for a moment.

Rose swallowed as this 'Hart' nodded, smirking coldly and heading to a cupboard in the corner of the room. As he returned with the chains, he made no effort to hide the fact he was looking Rose up and down, and evidently liked what he saw. Rose cringed and the Master rolled his eyes.

"That's enough, _Captain Hart_," the Master growled "just chain Miss Tyler up like I told you,"

Rose swallowed yet again as Captain Hart chained her up, his hands lingering a little more than necessary as he passed the chains around her chest. Once the chains were secure, Captain Hart retreated to sit on a stool near the stairs. The Master then took up a seat in front of Rose and leant forward, hands outstretched.

"What are you going to do to me?" Rose breathed, finally unable to keep silent any longer.

The Master chuckled, that low sinister sound that chilled Rose to the bone.

"Oh, it's alright, Rose," the Master announced "nothing more than a little telepathy. Let's see how wonderful you think your Doctor is when you've seen the things he's done!"

Rose flinched as the Master addressed her as simply Rose. He had never done that before, and she hated it. The way he said it, it sounded so like the way the Doctor said it, and Rose hated it. Before she could protest any more, the Master's finger tips were on her temple, and he dove into her mind.

**~StormWolf10~**

Death. Everywhere Rose Tyler turned, there was death, destruction, torment. She wanted to leave, she wanted to open her eyes, to wake up and find that it was all a nightmare, that she was safe in the TARDIS. But she wasn't. She was far from safe, and far from the TARDIS. She was being bombarded with all of the Master's memories of the Doctor, and she desperately tried to keep in mind that the Master hated him, that these memories had been taken out of context, warped, altered. But it was no good. Suddenly, the bombardment stopped, and Rose's eyes flew open to see the Master gaping at her. She could feel tear tracks on her cheeks, and her body felt stiff, so they'd obviously been sat there for some time.

"Well, well, Miss Tyler," the Master sneered "looks like you're stronger than I thought you were! Don't think I couldn't hear you, whispering in your mind that these memories had been altered and warped! It seems that you think your Doctor is a saint,"

"No, I don't," Rose answered angrily, surprising even herself "I know that he's not some kind of God, but he's a good man. I know that, whatever it was you were showing me, he had his reasons for doing it."

The Master glared at her, and stood suddenly, heading to the stairs.

"Hart, keep an eye on her," the Master instructed, taking the stairs two at a time.

"As if she's going to go anywhere," Captain Hart muttered "we tied her to the damn chair!"

However, Captain Hart crossed the room and took up the chair in front of Rose. They sat, staring at each other for a few moments, Rose's eyes wide as he leered at her.

"Captain John Hart," he introduced himself after a few moments, smirking.

Rose didn't reply, and she still looked scared.

"You're a pretty little thing, aren't you? I can see why the Master wants you," John Hart announced, looking Rose up and down.

His attention made Rose want to run and hide, but she couldn't. She'd always hated blokes like John Hart, she'd had the misfortune of meeting some in a club from time to time. However, she was rather ironically saved from him by the Master's return.

"Now, Miss Tyler, perhaps we shall try again, hmm?" the Master asked, smiling coldly.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Chapter 5 :) Please read and review**

"No!"

Rose was surprised that she'd even managed to utter the word, but she had.

"Excuse me?" the Master asked coldly, glaring down at Rose as he towered over her chair.

"You're not making me go through that again!" she continued, although her voice wavered.

"You misunderstand, Tyler," the Master sneered, grabbing her face and forcing her to look up at him "it was _not_ a choice! You will do as I say!"

"No I won't!" Rose announced angrily.

The Master quickly backhanded her across the cheek, and Rose could taste blood in her mouth. Still, she raised her eyes to meet the Master's.

"Captain Hart," the Master announced quietly "untie her."

"Yes, Master," John answered, moving swiftly and untying Rose. At least this time his hands didn't linger.

As soon as the chains were removed, Rose was dragged to her feet and the chair was removed.

"It looks like Miss Tyler here needs to be taught a lesson, Captain Hart," the Master continued in the same quiet tone.

Rose could see John Hart grinning out of the corner of her eye, and she shivered. She had no idea what they were going to do to her.

**~StormWolf10~**

The Doctor sighed, sinking into the control room chair. He was still no closer to finding Rose, and the TARDIS was still failing to track Rose's key. He was running out of time, a fact that he scoffed at; he, a Time Lord, running out of time. If Gallifrey were still around he'd be laughed out of the Citadel. The Doctor was also running out of ideas, and he had no idea what kind of danger Rose was facing. He had no doubt she'd be ok- she was strong, his Rose- but the truth was he was still no closer to tracking her than three days ago when he'd left Jackie. Of course, there was one person he could call upon, but that would cause problems when he finally located Rose; how was he to explain that Captain Jack Harkness was still alive and they had, in fact, left him behind. He knew Rose would be devastated to find that they'd left Jack behind, but he hoped that the joy of being rescued and of seeing her adoptive brother again would outweigh that fact. Reluctantly, the Doctor picked up the phone and dialled a number.

"Hello?"

"Hello Jack, it's the Doctor. I need your help,"

**~StormWolf10~**

Rose recoiled from yet another slap. By now her cheek was red and sore. As she stumbled backwards and fell to the floor, the Master kicked her swiftly in the stomach. She heard her ribs crack, and vomit rose in her throat, but she fought to keep it down. John Hart was still stood off to one side, watching the events unfold with a gleam in his eye. By now, Rose was curled up on the floor, weakly trying to fend off the Master's blows. The Master was towering over her now, kicking and punching, a violent, terrifyingly primal look in his eyes. Rose refused to cry out; she refused to give the Master and Captain Hart the satisfaction. Captain Hart seemed to be waiting for that moment when she finally broke and gave in, and it made Rose sick to see that he was looking forward to it. The Master, meanwhile, was acting out of pure anger and spite.

"You, Rose Tyler, are going to learn your lesson! You never disobey me! I am your Master!" the Master bellowed, punctuating each sentence with a kick to her stomach.

Rose curled up in a foetal position, desperate to protect her weakened, bruised body. She'd learned enough from travelling with the Doctor to know that internal bleeding was likely with these injuries, and internal bleeding- if not treated- could lead to death. Then again, she supposed, maybe death would be welcome right now.

**~StormWolf10~**

Jack Harkness barrelled into the TARDIS, his face set in a grimace. However, his features softened upon seeing the distressed Time Lord sat on the control room chair.

"Doctor," Jack murmured, hurrying over.

The Doctor scoffed.

"At least I don't have to convince you I'm still me," the Doctor joked bitterly, looking up at Jack.

"What do you mean?" Jack asked in confusion.

"When I regenerated, Rose didn't believe it was me. She took a lot of convincing," the Doctor explained tiredly, a ghost of a smile gracing his face.

"Well, I thought regeneration was a myth," Jack replied "but I figured that the blue box kind of gave you away,"

The Doctor smirked at that, but he quickly became solemn again.

"Jack, I have no idea where Rose is," the Doctor admitted quietly.

"Come on, Doc, it's not the first time Rose has wandered off! We'll find her," Jack announced optimistically.

"She's completely vanished, Jack, I can't trace her at all!" the Doctor protested, hands in his hair as he jumped up and began pacing the room.

Jack swallowed. He had never seen the Doctor so distressed.

**~StormWolf10~**

Silent tears ran down Rose's cheeks as the Master delivered a final blow to her shaking body.

"I think we'll leave Rose to it, Captain Hart. I think she's learnt her lesson now, but it won't hurt to give her some time to think it over," the Master commented dryly, seemingly unaffected by the fact he had just spent several hours 'teaching Rose a lesson'.

The Master smirked at Rose before crossing the room to the stairs and heading out of the cellar. As John Hart passed Rose, he also smirked at her, and gave a little wave before ascending the staircase. Finally, after hours of abuse, Rose was alone. In those few hours, her hope the Doctor would find her had begun to slip away, slowly but surely. She was still desperate to hold onto the hope that the Doctor would arrive soon to rescue her, but at the same time, she hoped he didn't. She didn't want the Doctor seeing her like this, and she certainly didn't want the Master getting hold of him. It was then, curled up in a foetal position on the cold damp stone floor, that Rose realised she'd have to get herself out. Before the Master could turn her into a weapon to destroy the man she most loved in her entire life…


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Another chapter! We're starting to get to the gritty stuff now, so it should start getting a little faster paced.**

Rose hadn't been given much time to rest before the Master and Captain Hart had returned to the basement. They had tugged her up the stairs, force fed her some bread and water, tied her to a chair again and returned to hitting her until she agreed to do what the Master said. She didn't know what it was, but the more Rose looked into the Master's eyes, the more her control seemed to be slipping. Panicked, she tried to tear her eyes away, look at something- _anything_- else, but she couldn't. Her eyes were locked on those of the Master's, and she was unable to move them. Fighting down the bubble of panic that rose within her, she concentrated on schooling her expression so that they didn't sense her fear; she didn't need them knowing that they were getting to her.

"Now, Rose Tyler," the Master stated, enunciating each word in a way that made Rose's spine freeze; he said her name exactly like the Doctor used to (and, a small portion of Rose's mind that wasn't frozen in terror noted that she'd used past tense for the Doctor, as if he were gone, dead, she wouldn't see him again…) "how about you do as I say, hmm? Wouldn't want you getting hurt even more, would we?"

Rose glared at him, although it was rather ineffective as she was covered in bruises. Her damaged ribs ached and her cheek throbbed from the numerous slaps she'd received. It was sure to bruise come morning.

"What do you want from me?" Rose asked, teeth gritted against the pain.

"I've told you, Tyler," the Master smirked "I want to turn you into a weapon that I can use against your precious Doctor,"

"It can't just be for that," Rose replied levelly, shocking even herself at her bravery "you could have picked up any one of the Doctor's past companions for that. The Doctor loves me no more than he loved them, I'm nothing special. Just the latest in the long line."

Rose's tone was adamant, and the Master was momentarily stunned that this pathetic little human really did believe that she was just another of the Doctor's companions. However, he quickly recovered, and bent down so they were almost nose to nose.

"Very clever, Rose Tyler," he sneered, lips quirking into that awful cold smile of his "I don't just want you to become a weapon against the Doctor. I want to unleash the Bad Wolf."

"I- I'm not the Bad Wolf anymore. The Doctor took the power out of me," Rose stuttered, eyes wide now.

It was clear that this was a rather terrifying topic for the young human woman.

"Oh, so untrue, Tyler!" the Master announced, straightening as he began to pace the floor in front of her "That's what the Doctor _wanted_ you to think! But you are every inch the Bad Wolf, whether you know it or not!"

"I- I don't understand!" Rose admitted worriedly, pressing herself back into the chair, ignoring the burning of her ribs as she did so.

"You, Rose Tyler, are a goddess, a living legend. You have the potential to be feared across the cosmos if only you understood how to unleash the Bad Wolf and control it at your will! And that is why the Doctor never told you that it was a part of you, that you can never truly separate it from yourself. Because, the Bad Wolf coupled with the Oncoming Storm is a…Well, is a terrifying prospect. You are _so_ unique; I couldn't let this opportunity pass, and I certainly couldn't let the Doctor have you! You'd never reach your full potential with him…_coddling_ you! But me? Me, I can offer you so much more! Think of it, Rose Tyler, we could rule the Universe, you and I, no more drums inside my head, just our sheer power!" the Master exclaimed, a more than mad glint in his eye.

Rose stared at him incredulously.

"You are completely mad," she muttered.

The Master glared at her as Captain Hart chuckled from where he had been hovering in the corner. Hart, however, quickly shut up as the Master shot him a dark look.

"That may be, but you are the only one who can stop the drums," the Master replied quietly.

Before Rose could form a response, the Master's fingertips were on her forehead, and he had dived into her mind.

**~StormWolf10~**

The Master roared in anger, falling backwards as he pulled out of Rose's mind. Pushing himself back up, he kicked a nearby chair, causing Rose to flinch. She was watching him cautiously, her wide eyes red rimmed, indicating that she had been crying. The Master knew that, of course; he hadn't exactly been gentle as he trampled through her mind searching for a way to unlock the Bad Wolf.

"Master?" Captain Hart piped up warily, stepping forward "Perhaps we should call it a day? Rose is looking rather tired,"

Rose glanced at John Hart, shocked by the fact he was speaking up for her. The Master surveyed the human woman carefully, watching her tired face, the bruises he had inflicted in the last few hours standing out starkly against her pale skin. Tuning out the drums that had started up in the back of his mind yet again, the Master sighed, stepped forward and gripped Rose's face in his hand, forcing her to look at him.

"We will continue this tomorrow, Tyler," he told her forcefully.

Then, he pushed her back in the rickety chair, spun on his heels and headed for the door. Rose could have sworn that, before John Hart followed, he'd offered her a sympathetic smile. She shook her head, clearing it. Evidently, her time spent with the Master was sending her mad.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: New chapter, please read and review :) I don't think there's anything here that would trigger sensitive people, but it is starting to get a little more intense now…**

"When did you know?" Jack asked the Time Lord quietly "About me being immortal?"

"I felt it almost as soon as it had happened," the Doctor admitted softly "I felt your timeline change, alter, become a fixed point. It…" the Doctor broke off, not wanting to upset Jack further.

"It made you feel sick. Scared." Jack completed bitterly.

The Doctor sighed, scrubbing a hand over his eyes.

"Jack, I'm sorry! It's just…you're an impossible thing! You're…_wrong_, you shouldn't be able to exist!" the Doctor protested weakly.

"How come I do exist then?" Jack retorted, his anger getting the better of him slightly.

"Because Rose wanted you to," the Doctor answered softly.

"What?" Jack asked, incredulous.

"After I sent Rose home, she came back. She'd opened the heart of the TARDIS and looked into it," the Doctor explained quietly, although guilt was evident in his tone "remember what happened to Margaret the Slitheen?" Jack nodded, remembering that adventure rather clearly "Well, somehow, instead of something similar happening to Rose, she was able to absorb the power. She…She became the Bad Wolf,"

Jack gasped at that, eyes widening.

"I thought the Bad Wolf was just a legend!" Jack admitted, before adding "Then again, I thought that about Time Lords too, I suppose…"

"The point is, Jack, Rose brought you back to life. But she couldn't control the power, wasn't used to it, and she brought you back permanently."

"Does Rose know about this?" Jack asked tentatively.

The Time Lord shook his head.

"She'd go spare if she did," the Doctor replied "and, quite honestly, I wasn't ready to face you yet,"

Jack let out an angry sigh.

"But," the Doctor continued, his tone forcing Jack to meet his eyes. They were sincere "if we're going to get Rose back, I need to be able to face you. And, I think it's about time I tried,"

The two men smiled weakly at each other, descending into silence.

"So, could the Bad Wolf be why someone took Rose?" Jack asked suddenly.

The Doctor's eyes widened. How had he not thought of that?

"It is possible," the Doctor admitted "but Rose thinks I took the power out of her. I took the energy of the vortex out of her, but she's still the Bad Wolf. It's a part of her,"

"Why didn't you tell her?" Jack asked, feeling his anger growing again.

He thought of Rose like a little sister, and certainly wasn't happy with the Doctor keeping rather important facts from her.

"Because that would endanger her more! I don't know what might unlock the Bad Wolf inside her, but you know how stubborn Rose can be, and the last thing I wanted to do is encourage her to endanger herself by summoning the Bad Wolf to rescue us." The Doctor replied.

Jack relented after hearing this; the Doctor clearly had his reasons and Jack couldn't say he disagreed with them.

"So, how do we find out who's got Rose?" Jack asked.

"Oh, come on, Jack! It'll be just like old times! We always managed to find Rose when she wandered off before!" the Doctor replied, grinning.

Well, Jack thought, that was a change in tune.

"Even with me being 'impossible'?" Jack asked, although he was smirking slightly.

"Jack, you know me! I try to believe in as many as six impossible things before breakfast!" the Doctor declared, grinning manically.

Jack glanced at his fob watch. He didn't have the heart to tell the Time Lord that it was quarter past three in the afternoon. Besides, the Doctor made a valid point.

**~StormWolf10~**

"Good _morning_, Rose Tyler!" the Master declared, striding into the room.

"I hardly think it's a good morning, Master," Rose retorted quickly.

She saw the Master's eyes light up in glee, and Rose suddenly realised that she had called him 'Master'. Why had she done that? She had sworn to herself that she would never give in, never call him Master. He was not her Master, and she was not his slave. But, now, Rose wasn't so sure…

"Well, well! Looks like those lessons did Tyler some good, Captain Hart!" The Master crowed, smirking proudly.

Rose could have sworn that Captain Hart had rolled his eyes at that, but when she looked again, he was looking as smug as the Master.

"Now, Rose Tyler," the Master announced, bending over so he was face to face with her "we're going to be going back down to the basement today, and you'll do as I say. Am. I. Clear?"

Rose swallowed, but desperately tried to hide her fear.

"Hart," the Master declared loudly "untie her and escort her to the basement."

The Master then quickly left the room as Captain Hart began to untie Rose.

"Why are you doing this?" Rose asked the man quietly.

There was a pause before John Hart replied.

"I don't know what you mean,"

"Of course you do! And he can't hear you now, so tell me. Why are you letting him boss you around?" Rose asked again.

"It's money," Captain Hart admitted quietly "when you've been in as many rehabs as I have, people tend to not want to hire you. I needed the money, the Master offered it. I accepted."

And then, he was tugging her from the chair, not as roughly as the Master did, but not gently either.

"So…you like watching the Master hurt me?" Rose asked, her voice trembling slightly as she attempted to keep her composure.

"No," Captain Hart admitted "you're far too beautiful to deserve that,"

Rose froze at that, almost hearing the lust-filled smirk in the man's face. She stiffened instantly as she felt his breath on the back of her neck as he led her down the stairs to the basement. As she was thrown into another chair, her ribs throbbed, and Rose bit back a cry but didn't quite succeed in holding back the tears.

"Oh, don't start that!" the Master sneered, rolling his eyes upon seeing the tears running down Rose's pale face.

Rose bit her lip as the Master's harsh comment caused more tears to well up. She would not cry. She was strong. She was a _Tyler_. But then, remembering that, made her cry. She wondered about her Mum, waiting anxiously for her. She'd probably called the Doctor by now; Rose had been gone- what? Three days now? - and her mother wasn't as stupid as some people thought. Jackie Tyler was no fool. She wouldn't have bothered with the Police. Thoughts of the Doctor sprung forth unbidden, comforting her Mum, trying to find her. It was then that Rose Tyler began to sob. It was then that Rose Tyler realised that the Master had already broken her.

**~StormWolf10~**

Rose stiffened as the Master began attaching electrodes to her head. She tried resisting, she really did, but then the crazed Time Lord threatened to snap her pretty little neck and Rose immediately stopped struggling. As the Master nodded for Captain Hart to switch the strange machine on, Rose cried out in pain. It felt like her head was on fire, burning and burning, and as much as she begged, _pleaded_ for them to turn it off, to stop, they didn't. The Master simply smirked at her. This went on for…_hours_. Days. Weeks. Rose didn't know, but what she did know was that she'd quickly given up crying out and begging for them to stop. She'd given that up within the first hour, instead resorting to simply whimpering and sobbing. And the whole time, the Time Lord was talking to her. About meeting Queen Victoria and a werewolf, New Earth, meeting Sarah Jane, Madame De Pompadour, the Cybermen…And then finally, _finally_ the pain stopped. Rose gasped, gulping air into her lungs greedily, tilting her head back and shutting her eyes. Her entire body still tingled with pain, but it wasn't as severe now. And then she felt a gentle, familiar hand tilting her head back down and she opened her eyes. Rose grinned when she saw the man crouched in front of her, a man she never thought she'd see again. Slightly messy brown hair. Rumpled suit, tie askew.

"Rose?" the man prompted, concern evident in his eyes.

"Doctor," Rose breathed, grinning.

"Come on; let's get you out of here,"

Rose flexed her wrists as the ropes binding her to the chair were undone.

"What about the man who'd kidnapped me?" Rose asked, looking around to see that they were alone in the basement.

"Dealt with," The tone was reassuring, gentle.

Rose allowed herself to be led upstairs, although her feet were dragging. She was exhausted.

"Come on, Rose, you're exhausted. Into bed,"

Half asleep now, Rose didn't protest as she was led to the top floor of the house and tucked up in a large bed. She smiled sleepily at her Time Lord, reaching out to cup his cheek.

"'M so glad you're here," she told him tiredly.

"Me too," he admitted gently, smiling softly.

"Doctor…" Rose whispered as she finally fell asleep.

Smiling, the Time Lord left the room.

"Well?"

"It's alright, Captain Hart," the Time Lord said, smirking "the brainwashing has worked,"

"She thinks you're the Doctor?" Captain Hart asked, eyes widening slightly.

He hadn't expected the plan to work. In fact, he'd doubted the Master believed it would work, either; the Master had even said as much when he revealed his other plan, the one that would happen if they couldn't unleash the power of the Bad Wolf. One that would force Rose to remain…_faithful_ to him.

"Indeed," the Master replied, eyes glinting "and now Rose Tyler will do anything I tell her!"


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Sorry for the shortness of this chapter, but the bits with Rose and the Master offer a lot more to be written. Therefore, the next chapter will make up for the shortness of this one :)**

The Doctor was surrounded by parchment, a fountain pen in one hand and ink staining his hands and shirt. He had taken his jacket off and rolled his shirtsleeves up, but had still managed to get ink on his shirt.

"Narrowed it down yet?" Jack asked as he placed a cup of tea on a sliver of clear space on the table the Doctor was working at.

The Doctor shrugged.

"So far, I've got a list of forty three aliens and sixteen planets that could be responsible for Rose's disappearance," the Doctor replied, glancing up at Jack.

They were in the TARDIS library, and had been there for almost a full day now. Their time had been spent noting down any and all aliens that would want to harm the Doctor and/or Rose, this only being broken up by regular phone calls to a distraught Jackie to give her updates on how they were doing. The Doctor himself looked a mess; his hair was sticking up like a hedgehog, his glasses had ink smeared over one lense and were slipping down his nose and he was so pale his freckles stood out starkly.

"Can I help?" Jack asked, frowning.

"I doubt it; most of the aliens you'd know about I've already written down," the Doctor admitted, smiling apologetically.

As Jack dropped into a chair beside the Doctor's, the Time Lord reached for his cup of tea.

"I could help, you know," Jack continued eagerly "I've picked up a few things since you last saw me,"

"I know, Jack. I know you're working for some place called Torchwood," the Doctor replied.

Jack's eyebrows shot up at that, shocked the Time Lord knew that.

"TARDIS." The Doctor explained "That's another reason I had to leave you at the Game Station,"

Jack nodded in understanding.

"Torchwood…" the Doctor repeated quietly, frowning.

"What about it?" Jack asked, perplexed.

"That house in Scotland was called Torchwood…" the Doctor mumbled, brow furrowed.

"You mean Torchwood House?" Jack asked "The one you and Rose went to in 1879?"

The Doctor nodded, before freezing.

"How do you know that?" he asked quietly, eyes wide.

"Queen Victoria set it up after the encounter with the werewolf. It was established to protect Earth against aliens. And to protect Earth against…"

"Against?" the Doctor prompted.

"You," Jack completed quietly.

The Doctor stood suddenly, stumbling backwards and falling over his chair in a haste to get away from his so-called friend.

"_You_ work for an organisation that was built upon the foundation of keeping me and Rose out?" the Doctor asked angrily.

"It's not like that, Doctor!" Jack protested, standing up "I swear! My branch, Torchwood 3, I don't run it like that! We're not against you!"

Before the Doctor could retort, they heard a ringing. Realising it was the phone, the Doctor frowned. Jackie shouldn't be calling again for another forty minutes. The Time Lord hurried down the corridor to the control room, answering the phone tentatively.

"Hello?" he asked, uncertain.

"Doctor," a man announced gruffly. The Brigadier. "There's something you need to know,"

The Doctor fell silent almost immediately. He didn't like the tone of the Brigadier's voice.

"Doctor? Are you still there?" the man asked.

"Yes! Yes, go on, Brigadier," the Doctor prompted, eyes wide.

"We have picked up strange energy readings in the area of a South London council estate. The Powell Estate, I believe it's called. There were sightings of your TARDIS there a few hours prior, and it seems that the young girl you were travelling with was taken during the energy flux." The Brigadier explained gently.

The Doctor swallowed. They were one step closer to rescuing Rose.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: This chapter was really hard to write, but for those of you who are a little confused over this, 'the Doctor' in this chapter is, in fact, the Master… (insert evil laugh here) ;) The end of this chapter may trigger sensitive people, although not explicit and not enough to warrant a rating change. It's not explicit, and not exactly non-con, but Rose **_**is**_** brainwashed…**

When Rose woke up, she was alone in bed. Sitting up and yawning, she pushed herself from the bed. It was then that Rose noticed she was still in her clothes from the day before. She wrinkled her nose, and then caught a glimpse of herself in the grimy, cracked mirror hanging on the opposite wall. She grimaced at her reflection; she was pale, her hair was lank and in need of a good wash, and despite sleeping for several hours, she still had bags under her eyes. Rose sighed, running a hand through her hair, dislodging several tangles before heading out the room. Why the Doctor had decided to stay was beyond Rose's understanding; the house was awful, musty and damp. As she descended the rickety staircase, she heard voices coming from the front room.

"But Master, how can you be sure she's still brainwashed?"

"Because, Captain Hart, that equipment is top of the range, guaranteed to succeed," 'the Doctor' replied angrily.  
"Doctor?" Rose prompted, standing at the door of the room.

'The Doctor' whipped round, eyes wide.

"Rose! You're awake!" he exclaimed, obviously shocked at seeing her up.

"Yeah," Rose agreed, eyes flitting to Captain Hart "an' I thought you said you'd dealt with the man who'd kidnapped me,"

"I did," the Time Lord answered testily.

"Then why's he still here?" Rose asked cautiously, nodding towards Captain Hart.

'The Doctor' seemed to flounder for a few moments before answering rather dismissively.

"Can I not give the man a second chance, Rose?"

Rose blinked, unsure how to reply. What had happened to the Doctor being 'not a second chance kind of guy', like on the Sycorax ship? And, Rose was pretty sure that- given the chance- Captain Hart would try to do…things to her. She shuddered, pushing those thoughts back in her mind, not wanting to think about that. Not now. She was safe. So, Rose shrugged and mumbled:

"I suppose so,"

The Time Lord's features softened slightly, although there still wasn't something completely right about him- something Rose couldn't quite put her finger on.

"How are you feeling today?" he asked.

"Ribs are sore," Rose admitted.

'The Doctor', however, had already apparently lost interest in the conversation, and was fiddling with some of the equipment Rose assumed he had brought up from the basement while she slept.

"They'll heal," he dismissed.

Rose, dumbstruck, nodded.

**~StormWolf10~**

Throughout the day, Rose continued to rack her brain, trying to piece together what exactly was wrong with the Doctor. However, as she looked back over her memories of their travels, she came to realise that absolutely nothing was different. When she explained her feelings to the Doctor later that night, the Time Lord had readily explained that it was probably due to that awful machine she'd been hooked up to the previous night when he'd arrived to rescue her.

"So, when are we going back to the TARDIS?" Rose asked as she picked at the hunk of bread Captain Hart had thrust at her for dinner.

She had no appetite, and was so busy picking at her food, Rose didn't notice that the Time Lord had stiffened and Captain Hart was looking rather worried.

"Not yet," the Doctor answered eventually, forcing a smile.

Rose surveyed him sceptically.

"Are you gonna eat that?" the Doctor asked, nodding at the hunk of bread that Rose was picking at.

She shook her head numbly, and the Doctor rolled his eyes.

"I don't really fancy it," Rose admitted quietly "do we have anything else?"

"It's that or nothing," the Doctor growled.

"What did you eat? I haven't seen you eat anything," Rose asked.

"I ate earlier," the Doctor answered quickly.

Rose's eyes narrowed. She doubted that he was telling the truth. When he saw that she still wasn't eating, the Doctor sighed.

"You'll go hungry then, Rose," the Doctor reminded her angrily.

Rose didn't meet his eyes. It was times like these that she wondered why she travelled with the Doctor. He had such a temper on him sometimes, more so since he'd regenerated. He'd snap at her, talk down to her, and Rose was quite frankly too scared to stop him. Growing up, Jackie had taught her to stand up for herself, that she was a Tyler, and that she shouldn't let people walk all over her. But on several occasions now, the Doctor had threatened to maroon her on some distant barren planet, or sling her out of an airlock, and Rose wouldn't put it past him to do so.

"Why don't you and I go upstairs, Rose," the Doctor suggested suddenly.

Rose nodded, glancing at Captain Hart. No matter what the Doctor had said about second chances, she still didn't like being in the same room as Captain John Hart. Quickly, Rose followed, glad to finally be alone with the Doctor. However, she was perplexed to see him leading her to the bedroom. As she entered the room, she once again couldn't shake the feeling that there was something odd about the Doctor…

**~StormWolf10~**

"Rose," the Doctor began, his eyes glinting and a smirk upon his face "have I ever told you how beautiful you look?"

Rose snorted, remembering what she'd looked like just hours before when she'd caught a glance of herself in the mirror. She would bet anything that she looked even worse now.

"You do, though," the Doctor continued, stepping closer, still smirking "and there's something I want you to know."

"There is?" Rose asked breathlessly.

The Doctor was face to face with her now, and he nodded before ducking his head to her ear, his breath tickling the sensitive skin as his lips ghosted over the shell of her ear.

"I love you," he whispered.

As the Doctor drew away, Rose gazed up at him, her brown eyes wide with emotion.

"I love you too," she admitted softly.

The Doctor grinned, and ducked down to kiss her fiercely. It was in that moment that Rose remembered why she still travelled with this slightly crazy Time Lord; she loved him. The kiss was searing, painful, but Rose had been craving it for so long that she didn't even care. She'd let this man do anything to her, he was the Doctor, and she trusted him explicitly. A tiny part of her mind was mumbling something about how her Mum would disapprove, but as the Doctor backed her up against the wall and began suckling the pulse point in her neck, the voice was quickly silenced. Before she was even aware of it, the Doctor was stripping her of her clothes, spinning her round and walking her back towards the bed and pushing her forcefully onto it. Rose whimpered as a pain shot through her ribs, but the Doctor was already climbing on top of her and kissing her fiercely again.

"Remember the first time we kissed?" the Doctor asked as he bit into her collarbone.

Rose gasped and shook her head.

"You were the Bad Wolf," the Doctor continued, biting along her collarbone. She was sure to have marks there, come morning "remember that, Rose?"

Rose nodded, whimpering and arching into him. The Doctor laughed darkly at her obvious need.

"Now then, my wolf cub," he said quietly, his tone controlling as he smirked at her "let's see just how bad you really are,"


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Next chapter :) Back to the Doctor and Jack now, and they're about to make an important discovery.**

"Lethbridge-Stewart, I've put you on speakerphone," the Doctor announced smoothly, having finally regained his speech.

By now, Jack had joined him in the control room; the sole reason the Doctor was putting the Brigadier on speakerphone.

"That's quite alright, Doctor." the Brigadier answered, clearly keen to get down to business "Now, the team here at UNIT have been looking over the CCTV footage, and it appears that there was a man there, using a device we think was perhaps a Vortex Manipulator."

"Vortex Manipulator?" the Doctor echoed, frowning.

"Could be a Time Agent?" Jack suggested "Although I don't know what they'd want with Rose,"

"Doctor?" the Brigadier asked "Who's that you're with?"

"Ah, Brigadier, this is an old friend of mine, Captain Jack Harkness," the Doctor explained.

"I work for Torchwood Three," Jack chipped in.

"_Ah_, that Captain Harkness," the Brigadier replied "I must say, I've heard some shocking stories about you, Captain,"

Jack smirked while the Doctor rolled his eyes.

"Anyway, back to business," the Doctor spoke up tensely "is there any way to trace the energy flux?"

"Well, that's something else you need to know, Doctor," the Brigadier admitted, and the Doctor noticed that he seemed worried "we managed to get audio on the CCTV, thanks to some young man down in IT, and it seems that the man who kidnapped your young woman called himself 'Master',"

Jack frowned at that, not understanding the significance. The Doctor, however, had stiffened.

"Are you sure?" the Doctor managed after a few long moments of silence.

"I'm afraid so, Doctor," the Brigadier admitted sadly "although I am struggling to see how he can be alive. And, quite frankly, I'd have thought that the Time Lords may have something to say about his abducting your young lady friend, but we've received no contact."

"That's…That's because the Time Lords are gone," the Doctor answered quietly "along with Gallifrey. There was a war. A Time War. Against the Daleks. Everyone lost."

They fell into an awkward silence for several long moments before the Brigadier spoke again.

"I'm sorry, Doctor," he told his friend sincerely "but the question is, why would the Master want that young woman?"

"I don't know," the Doctor admitted, rubbing his forehead.

Jack suddenly stiffened beside him.

"Doctor," he began quietly, eyes wide "would the Master know about Rose being the Bad Wolf?"

The Doctor's eyes widened at that, and he nodded.

"As you said yourself, Jack, the Bad Wolf is a legend. An extremely well-known legend, and I have no doubt the Master's heard about it," the Doctor agreed quietly.

"I take it that that's bad, Doctor?" the Brigadier chipped in, suddenly reminding the two men he was still on the phone.

"Yes," the Doctor answered quickly "it's very, _very_ bad,"

"Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, do you have any way to trace the energy left behind by the Vortex Manipulator?" Jack asked suddenly.

"We can try, but I must say that I'm not sure it will work," the Brigadier admitted regrettably.

"Do it! Please, Brigadier, we _have_ to try _everything_! Rose isn't safe with the Master, and I promised her mother I'd keep her safe, but I haven't even been able to track her down using the TARDIS key!" the Doctor insisted, verging on hysterics now as he began to pace and run his hands through his already-wild hair.

Jack sighed, glancing at the monitor that was still running scans to find Rose's TARDIS key. Even though the past seven attempts had proved fruitless, the Doctor insisted on keeping the scans running 'just in case'.

"I'll do what I can, Doctor," the Brigadier answered "I'll call you back when we have some news,"

And, with that, he hung up. The Doctor and Jack stood in silence for a minute or two before the Doctor sighed and reached for the phone again.

"What are you doing?" Jack asked in confusion.

"Phoning Jackie, let her know we've made some progress." The Doctor replied tiredly.

_Some progress_. The phrase echoed around his head as he dialled Jackie's number. They hadn't succeeded. They hadn't found Rose. They hadn't even found where she was. But it was _some progress_.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Only four chapters left after this, so continue to read and review!**

The Doctor sat up quickly as the TARDIS monitor pinged. Eyes wide, he shoved a hand into his jacket pocket and pulled his glasses out, slipping them on quickly. He then bent over the monitor, and Jack- who had been sat beside the Doctor on the control room chair- watched in amusement as the Doctor's eyes widened even more.

"What is it?" Jack asked, his eyes still sparkling with amusement.

"The TARDIS has finally managed to track Rose's key!" the Doctor exclaimed, one hand straying to his hair and ruffling it.

"Well, that's good, right?" Jack asked "What are we waiting for? Let's go get her!"

The Doctor froze for a moment, before beginning to set co-ordinates.

"We just need to make one stop first," he told the Captain.

"Where?" Jack asked in confusion.

"Jackie's,"

**~StormWolf10~**

As the TARDIS landed in the Powell Estate, the familiar groan echoed around the courtyard. However, the sparse few people who were out at that late hour payed it no mind; they were mostly drunk, and intent on only one thing- getting home. Nonetheless, the occupant of flat forty-eight, Bucknall House looked up at the achingly familiar sound. Jackie Tyler hadn't slept in days, not since her Rose had gone missing. Taking a deep breath and rubbing her eyes, she headed out to her small kitchen, praying that the Doctor was returning with good news. Pushing the images of the Doctor returning with Rose's broken body in his arms out of her mind, Jackie busied herself with making tea. It was the least she could do for the daft alien; after all, he had been ringing her every hour, even if he'd made no progress. That Doctor wasn't half bad, Jackie supposed as she reached in the back of the cupboard for some biscuits (she doubted that he'd actually sat down to eat), and quite frankly Rose could do a lot worse than him. _Like that Jimmy Stone_, a little voice in the back of her mind said. Just then, there was a knock on the door, and Jackie hurried to answer it.

"Hello, Jackie," the Doctor greeted softly, smiling weakly.

"Hello, Doctor," she replied quietly, stepping back to let him in.

Another man followed, and Jackie's eyes narrowed. He seemed…familiar.

"Jackie, this is Captain Jack Harkness. He's a friend of mine and Rose's," the Doctor introduced quietly.

"So you're the flirt Rose was tellin' me about," Jackie replied, still watching Jack carefully.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs Tyler," Jack said sincerely, smiling gently "Rose talks highly of you. I only wish we were meeting in better circumstances,"

Jackie nodded, smiling slightly.

"Why don't you two make yourself comfortable in the front room? I'll just finish making the tea," Jackie told them.

Jack went and seated himself in the front room, but the Doctor followed Jackie to the kitchen and leaned against the doorframe.

"I hope we didn't wake you," the Doctor told Jackie quietly "I probably should have waited a few hours and not arrived at two in the morning,"

"It's alright," Jackie replied calmly "I wasn't sleeping anyway,"

The Doctor's brow furrowed.

"Jackie, you really do need to get some rest," he said gently, moving forward to rest a hand on her shoulder.

However, Jackie spun on her heels to face him before he could touch her.

"And how am I supposed to rest, hmm?" she snapped suddenly, angry.

The Doctor opened his mouth to speak, but Jackie continued. The Time Lord remained silent, recognising that Jackie simply needed someone to vent to, and it appeared that he was that person.

"My daughter is out there, _alone_! With god knows what creepy, pervy aliens, who are doing _god knows what_ to her! _How_ am I supposed to be able to sleep when _my Rose_ is out there _in danger_? You may be used to this, Doctor, but I'm not! All I want is for my daughter to be back here, safe and sound, where she belongs!"

It was then that the Doctor noticed just how much this was taking its toll on his companion's mother; her eyes were red rimmed, her face pale as tears streamed down her cheeks. She wore no makeup and looked like all she needed was a good night's sleep and a hug from her daughter. Failing that, simply a hug. And so, the Doctor stepped forward and pulled Jackie into his arms. She gladly accepted the hug, sniffing slightly as she tried to stop crying. After a few minutes, Jackie pulled away, wiping her eyes on the back of her hand, smiling weakly.

"Sorry 'bout that, Doctor," she mumbled, not meeting his eyes.

"Nonsense," the Doctor replied, smiling gently "you have nothing to apologise for; to be honest, I felt like doing the exact same thing several times the past few days,"

However, the Doctor's smile faltered as he noticed the tea things set out on the side.

"Jackie, you have three mugs out," he murmured.

"Well, there's you, me an' Jack, you prawn!" Jackie reminded him, swatting him half-heartedly with the tea towel.

"But Jackie," the Doctor reminded her quietly "you didn't know Jack was with me until you let us in. You already had the mugs out,"

Jackie blinked at him, processing what she had done and what the Doctor was saying.

"Oh," she murmured, tears welling in her eyes once more.

**~StormWolf10~**

The Doctor and Jack carefully explained the past hour's progress to Jackie over tea and biscuits. By the time they'd finished, it was quarter to four in the morning and yet Jackie was determined to help them save Rose.

"Now, Jackie, I really don't think this is a good idea! It's bad enough that the Master has Rose, we can't have you wading in and potentially getting yourself caught!" the Doctor protested as Jackie hurried down the stairs and out to the TARDIS, Jack and the Doctor following hurriedly.

"I don't care, Doctor, I'm coming with you!" Jackie answered stiffly, not looking at him.

The Doctor looked at Jack for support, but the ex-Time Agent merely shrugged, unsure how the Doctor thought he could help. Sighing, the Doctor unlocked the TARDIS and let Jackie and Jack inside.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: A bit more violence and dub-con in this chapter, but again nothing explicit :)**

Rose frowned and pressed a hand to her forehead. She had an unrelenting headache, but when she'd told the Doctor, he hadn't seemed to care, so Rose had retreated back upstairs to try and sleep it off. It had been just over a month ago that the Doctor had finally told her he loved her, and the week after, he had- rather surprisingly- proposed to Rose. She had, of course, said yes immediately, although she felt partially guilty that she hadn't been able to contact Jackie to tell her- her phone had gone missing and so she had no way of contacting her Mum. Of course, when she'd first told the Doctor about her phone being missing, Rose had commented that she could just ring her when they got back to the TARDIS. That had been a mistake. Rose had learned quickly after that, not to mention the TARDIS unless she wanted to be 'taught a lesson'. Her body was still black and blue from the beatings she had received when she stepped out of line, and Rose berated herself for not trying harder, for not being the best she could possibly be for the Doctor. Just then, the door of the bedroom opened, and Rose lifted her head slightly to see that it was the Doctor. She was glad; that Captain John Hart was still around, and Rose really did find him creepy, breathing down her neck and leering at her whenever the Doctor wasn't in the room. The Doctor was smirking, and Rose immediately recognised the lust-filled gaze as it settled on her. He quickly stepped over to the bed, kicked his shoes off, pulled off his shirt, trousers and pants and climbed on top of her.

"I was wondering where you'd disappeared to," he informed her lowly as he fiddled with her clothing.

Rose frowned, placing her hands on his chest and trying to push him away.

"Don't, Doctor," she complained quietly "I've still got a headache, an' I don't wanna be under the weather tomorrow,"

The Doctor smirked, before ducking down and kissing her fiercely. The next day, they were due to be married. The Doctor had had it all organised; they were to be married in a small chapel nearby, and Rose had been rather upset at first that she hadn't been allowed to organise her own wedding or pick her own wedding dress. However, the Doctor had been quick to teach her a lesson and remind her that this wasn't _her_ day, this was about them being together forever. Rose pushed the Doctor away again, and this time he looked rather annoyed.

"Can't you wait for one more day? It'll be our wedding night tomorrow," Rose pointed out quietly, timidly.

The Doctor ignored her, and moved to begin undoing her jeans. As Rose pushed him away for the third time, the Doctor growled in anger, and quickly struck Rose across the cheek. As her head collided with the bed post, her headache trebled, and she bit back the tears. The Doctor had reminded her time and time again that tears were for the weak.

"I don't _want_ to wait for _one. More. Day_." The Doctor ground out angrily, backhanding her again.

This time, Rose whimpered, and the Doctor rolled his eyes.

"Really?" he asked her in annoyance, glaring down at her "Did that hurt? Did I hurt you? What happened to _forever_, Rose? What about '_I'm never going to leave you'_?"

Rose swallowed. The Doctor was right. She was being selfish. If she wanted this marriage to work, she had to commit, make sacrifices, keep her promises. She had sworn to the Doctor that she'd never leave him, that she'd stay with him forever, and yet here she was, denying the one simple request of sex. What kind of wife would she be if she refused him sex after all the things he'd done for her; taken her travelling, shown her the stars, saved her life on numerous occasions. It wasn't even like she'd have to _do_ anything; she had quickly learned that the Doctor liked to be dominant in the bedroom, and had learned the hard way that he didn't like her digging her nails into his back, or tugging at his hair (she still had the bruises to prove that one). So, somewhat reluctantly, she forced a smile and nodded.

"'kay," she mumbled, reaching down to undo her jeans.

The Doctor smirked and moved to help her.

**~StormWolf10~**

The Doctor left her again once he'd finished up, and Rose succumbed to sleep, her headache still throbbing. However, the moment she drifted off, she felt a familiar golden presence in her mind, the one she hadn't felt since before the Doctor had dropped her off at the Powell Estate over a month ago. It was the TARDIS, soft and warm within her mind, soothing her, and it was then that Rose realised that must have been the cause of her headache- the TARDIS had somehow been blocked from her mind, no doubt something that had happened during her kidnapping.

_Hello, my wolf cub,_ the TARDIS hummed within her mind.

Even though she was fast asleep, Rose smiled. She had missed the comforting presence of the TARDIS in her head.

_Hello,_ Rose thought back _I've missed you!_

_And I, you,_ the TARDIS replied gently, and Rose could almost hear the smile in the tone.

_Why won't the Doctor tell me where you are?_ Rose asked quietly, bracing herself for a slap- she had gotten so used to speaking her mind earning her a beating the past month.

_Because you are not with the Doctor, my wolf cub,_ the TARDIS soothed in her mind _you are with the Master._

_No,_ Rose protested _the Doctor promised me that he'd dealt with the Master._

_Oh, my little wolf cub,_ the TARDIS murmured, giving Rose a mental hug _the man you have been with the past month is not our Doctor. It is the Master, and he used illegal technology to alter your memories while talking constantly to you about your experiences with the Doctor. He'd gathered enough information from the few short periods he had spent inside your head to know what to say. Over the few hours you were hooked up to the machine, the Master replaced the Doctor with himself in your memories and convinced you that he was the tenth incarnation of our beloved._

_So…I'm still in danger?_ Rose asked tentatively, beginning to panic.

_Yes,_ the TARDIS replied _but don't you worry, the Doctor is on his way, and you shall soon be back with us, safe and sound._

The TARDIS was fading in her mind now, and Rose reached out to grasp it, panicked.

_Please, TARDIS, you have to tell me,_ Rose implored _why has it taken the Doctor so long to find where I was?_

_Not to fear, Rose, it was not for lack of trying _the TARDIS reassured her calmly _it was because the Master blocked you from us. The Doctor was not aware of any other remaining Time Lords, and this meant that he was not aware of the Master's presence while he waited for you to leave your Mother's flat. Even from a distance, he was able to set up blocks in your mind to stop me from reaching out for you, and he was also able to block the signal your key transmits. Until recently, both blocks were intact, but he took the block off your key a few days ago, and the one in your mind had already begun breaking down slowly over the past two weeks._

_But you're coming for me, right?_ Rose asked fretfully.

_Yes, my wolf cub. You shall be safe soon._

**~StormWolf10~**

Rose sat up suddenly, gasping. That had been a rather strange dream, but it was already fading fast. She was, however, certain that the TARDIS had been speaking in her mind, something about the Doctor not really being the Doctor…Rose wrinkled her nose as she desperately tried to remember the dream. But it was no good. Sighing, she noticed that she'd only been asleep for two hours. She dropped back down against the pillows and was asleep again in a matter of minutes.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: It's the wedding! Will the Doctor, Jack and Jackie get there in time to stop it?**

"I don't care what you had a silly little dream about last night, Rose! Now, for god's sake, put the dress on and get ready!" the Doctor snapped angrily, hand forming a fist.

Rose swallowed hard, eying his fist nervously. She didn't want to go through with this wedding, she didn't know what it was, but whatever that dream had been about, it had made her doubt the Doctor. Once again, she was finding that there was something…_odd_ about him. However, she didn't want to provoke him even more, and so she quickly took the dress and scurried off to get changed.

"There's something wrong," the Master murmured once Rose had left.

"And what do we do about it?" Captain Hart asked, concerned.

"We…We keep an eye on her," the Master answered swiftly, before turning on his heels and walking off.

**~StormWolf10~**

As Rose pulled out the dress that _creep_ Captain Hart had selected for her, she blanched. Of course, she mused, she shouldn't be surprised. The dress- if it could be called a dress- had a daringly low neckline and a terrifyingly high hem. Sighing, she pulled off her clothes, glad that she had managed to find some makeup to wear and had time to have a proper shower. As she dressed, Rose tried to avoid looking in the floor-length mirror, which had obviously been placed there for the bride to admire her wedding dress, but Rose was really struggling to admire anything about it. As she had suspected, the dress was far from decent, with the hem barely hiding her knickers from view and the neckline barely keeping her breasts in. When Rose finally mustered the courage to look at herself in the mirror, she was relieved that her mother would not see her; this was most certainly not the wedding dress Rose had envisioned wearing, nor the one her mother had probably envisioned her daughter wearing. She bit her lip, willing herself to look away from the mirror, but finding that she was unable to. This was not the way she wanted her wedding day to go, and it was made even worse by the fact that that awful Captain John Hart would be there just…_leering_ at her. Rose shuddered and pushed the thought to the back of her head, desperate not to think of that right now. Right now, she needed to work out what was wrong with the Doctor, and how she was going to stop this wedding…

**~StormWolf10~**

Rose glanced at the vicar, an elderly man she had a sneaking suspicion the Doctor had bribed and threatened into performing the wedding ceremony. She had still not come up with an appropriate idea on how to stall the wedding, and the service was about to start. She supposed that this was it, she'd tried and failed.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today," the vicar began to the empty room.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, just skip to the 'I do's," the Doctor insisted in annoyance.

The vicar nodded, clearly terrified, and began thumbing through the bible he was holding. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, the doors crashed open, and Rose turned around to see her Mum, Captain Jack and…a tall man with wild hair and a brown pinstripe suit.

"Stop the wedding!" the man and Jack yelled in unison.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Bit of violence and swearing here, folks. One chapter to go now.**

Rose frowned. The man in the brown pinstripe suit looked familiar, but she couldn't quite remember where she'd seen him before. Both this familiar stranger and Jack hurried towards Rose, clearly angry about something. Rose noted that her Mum looked angry and concerned too, but hung back warily. However, before the two men could reach her, the Doctor grabbed Rose, dragging her closer to him.

"Let her go, Master!" the stranger declared angrily.

Rose frowned. The Master? That had been the man who'd kidnapped her, he wasn't the Doctor!

"You've got the wrong bloke," Rose told them quietly, voice trembling "this is the Doctor,"

She tried not to wince at the tight grip on her arm.

"Rose," Jackie piped up gently, rushing forward in her concern "tha's not the Doctor, sweetheart. _That's_ the Doctor," And with that, she nodded at the stranger.

Rose's brow furrowed. _Doctor_. It seemed to suit him…But her thoughts were so muddled, she wasn't sure. However, there was something comforting in his brown eyes, something familiar and calming, and Rose found herself feeling much like she had done last night, during her dream. Her dream... Suddenly, everything rushed back to her, the dream she'd had the previous night, the horrifying device the Master had used to alter her memories…Rose's eyes widened, and everyone in the room (apart from the rather befuddled vicar, who was slowly trying to back away from the altar and hide in one of the back rooms) saw that Rose was now very much aware that the man holding her was _not_ the Doctor. Almost immediately, she began struggling, trying to get away, but the Master held tight.

"Master," the Doctor began, stepping forward. His eyes never left Rose's.

"I like it when you say my name," the Master drawled, smirking.

"Rose, stop struggling. It's alright, we'll get you out," Jack reassured her gently, still stepping closer with the Doctor.

However, Jack was watching Captain John Hart.

"Well well," Captain Hart smirked "look who it is!"

"Shut it!" Jack snapped, glaring at him.

"You two know each other?" the Doctor asked, still not taking his eyes away from Rose.

"We…We were in the Time Agency together," Jack admitted.

"We were more than that," Hart corrected, still smirking.

Rose still hadn't stopped struggling against the Master, and Jackie was also edging closer now.

"Let me go!" Rose ground out desperately, still tugging furiously against the Master's iron grip.

Quick as a flash, the Master backhanded her and caused her to fall back against the altar. The Doctor and Jack both glared at the Master, while John Hart smirked and Jackie covered her mouth with her hand, tears welling in her eyes. As Rose began to get up, the Master's foot collided with her stomach, causing her to fall again.

"Did I tell you to get up?" he asked angrily, ignoring his little audience.

Rose didn't raise her head.

"I said, did I tell you to get up?" the Master spat.

Quietly, Rose replied with a "No,"

"Then don't!" the Master snapped.

To their absolute horror, the Doctor, Jack and Jackie all saw Rose nod. The Master smirked at them.

"See, Doctor? I've managed to train your stupid little ape!"

"Don't. Call. Her. That!" the Doctor ground out, a hint of northern accent coming through.

The Master rolled his eyes.

"Oh, please! You could at least be grateful! At least the stupid little bitch knows her place now! Although, I must say, she was remarkably hard to break; it was quite refreshing,"

The Master had been striding forward as he spoke, and was now face to face with the Doctor, smirking cockily. And then, very quickly, the Doctor decked him. Once again, Jackie gasped, covering her mouth, but this time it was Jack who was smirking rather than John Hart.

"It's over, Master," the Doctor told him lowly "UNIT are on their way, we even gave them the co-ordinates."

The Master's eyes widened slightly in fear, before he masked it and grinned.

"Oh, a welcome party! You shouldn't have!" the Master joked darkly.

Just as the Master spoke, the doors crashed open once again, and several gun-wielding UNIT workers hurried in. The Master scrambled backwards, pushing himself to his feet. There was suddenly a beeping, and he whipped around to see John Hart activating his Vortex Manipulator. He dived wildly at him, but there was a flash of light, and Captain Hart was gone. Wide-eyed, the Master whipped round again, eyes darting round the room as he tried to work out how to escape. He noticed that Jackie had crossed the room and was now knelt beside her daughter, leaving him with an open gap to make his escape. He broke into a run, and was almost at the door, when he heard a gunshot and felt pain blossoming in his chest. He dropped to the floor, crying out, and was slightly surprised when the Doctor ran over and knelt beside him.

"Come on, now, it's just a bullet. Regenerate!" the Doctor insisted, seeing the look in the Master's eyes.

The Master smirked.

"And be stuck in UNIT for the rest of my life? Or with you? No thanks," he gasped out, laughing bitterly.

"Come on! You have to, it's just us!" the Doctor protested wildly, eyes wide.

"Doctor!" Jack called suddenly, panic evident in his tone.

The Doctor looked over his shoulder to see Jackie cradling Rose, and Jack knelt beside him. Rose was far too pale, and in that moment, the Doctor realised. It was Rose or the Master. He swallowed, unsure what to do. He loved Rose with all his hearts, but if the Master died, he'd be alone again. And then, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up to see a UNIT soldier looking rather sympathetic. Frowning, the Doctor looked down at the Master. And then he realised. He'd stopped breathing.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Last chapter of this story! So proud to have finished this, I've loved writing it. I may consider a sequel to this, with them working through the aftermath of Rose's captivity, but it will depend on demand.**

Jackie sat by the side of her daughter's bed, watching her for any signs that she'd wake soon. It had been hours since they'd rescued her from that awful _Master_, and after allowing UNIT to deal with the body, the Doctor had helped them get an extremely disorientated Rose back to the TARDIS. Jackie remembered how her daughter had sobbed upon being led back into the strange ship, and the Doctor had explained that it was because Rose had been separated from it and had been unable to feel it in her mind during her time away. Of course, they were now back in Jackie's flat, but they had spent an hour or three in the TARDIS infirmary, where they realised the amount of abuse Rose had had to deal with in her time away. The Doctor had fixed up the injuries to her ribcage and dosed her up on pain relief before nudging them out of the TARDIS and leaving, insisting that he needed to give the Master a proper Time Lord funeral.

"I brought you some tea," Jack offered quietly, causing Jackie to look up.

The ex-Time Agent was standing near the door, evidently unsure whether he should leave Jackie alone or not.

"Thanks," Jackie replied tiredly, smiling weakly.

Jack smiled back, crossing the room to hand Jackie the mug of tea.

"Any change?" he asked softly, looking down at Rose.

"Nah," Jackie answered, sipping her tea "she's still not woken up. I'm glad, in a way, 'cause the Doctor's not back yet and I don't know what state she'll be in, but another part of me jus' wants her to wake up."

Jack squeezed the woman's shoulder gently.

"She will be ok, you know," Jack told her "Rose will make it through."

"I hope so," Jackie replied quietly.

**~StormWolf10~**

The Doctor watched as the funeral pyre went up in flames. The smoke was thick, and almost obscured the Master's body from view. He knew he should be wearing his ceremonial robes, but the Doctor was very much aware of what the Master had done to Rose. His Rose. He decided that the Master didn't deserve a full Time Lord funeral, and that the funeral pyre would be sufficient. The Doctor sighed heavily as he wondered how Rose was doing. He hoped she hadn't woken up yet, he wanted to be there to reassure her, but at the same time he was terrified of what the experience would have done to her. He should probably be heading back soon, and the fire had nearly completely destroyed the Master's body now. Casting the funeral pyre one last baleful look, the Doctor turned and headed back to the TARDIS.

**~StormWolf10~**

The Doctor barrelled into Jackie Tyler's flat, wide eyed.

"How is she? Has she woken up yet?" he asked as he burst into Rose's bedroom.

Jackie looked up and shook her head, while Jack watched the Time Lord over the top of a gossip magazine he was flicking through. The Doctor crossed to Rose's bedside, sitting on the side of the bed and grasping her hand. The three of them remained there like that for another three hours before Rose stirred. As she woke, she looked around her room in confusion, forgetting where she was for a few moments. But as it flooded back, she let out a sob of relief, and the Doctor wasted no time in pulling her in for a hug.

"I forgot you!" she exclaimed tearfully as she pulled away "I can't believe I just forgot you!"

"Well, you didn't forget me, exactly, the Master just replaced my face with his in your memories…" the Doctor trailed off as he realised that Rose had meant that she'd forgotten _him_, as in his looks, his smile, his personality.

Jackie simply shook her head at him and drew her daughter in for a hug while Jack squeezed her shoulder reassuringly.

"I'm so sorry, you guys!" Rose sobbed, smiling weakly.

"You, Rose Tyler, have nothing to be sorry for," the Doctor replied, grinning.

However, his smile slipped as Rose stiffened at his words.

"Don't call me tha'," Rose muttered, burying her face in her Mum's shoulder.

"Rose?" Jackie prompted, urging her daughter to sit up rather than bury her face in her shoulder.

"Rose, what's the matter?" Jack asked as the Doctor voiced a similar question.

Rose, however, wouldn't answer, staring resolutely at the ceiling instead. Tears were welling in her eyes.

"Rose, sweetheart, you need to tell us what's wrong so we can help you," Jackie prompted again gently.

"I don't want you callin' me tha'," Rose mumbled, meeting the Doctor's eyes.

The Doctor frowned, and thought back to what he'd said. And then it hit him. He'd said _Rose Tyler_.

"What did he do to you, Rose?" he asked quietly, gently "What did he do to make you scared of your own name?"

Rose swallowed nervously.

"It's more what he did after callin' me tha'." Rose admitted softly. Her hands were shaking. "He'd call me it, an' he'd sound so much like you. An' then he started with tha' mind altering thing, an' as he was talking about my travels with you, he kept callin' me it. Over, and over again."

By this point, Rose was sobbing.

"It hurt so much! Oh god, it hurt _so_ much!" she whispered, sobbing.

"What is it?" Jackie demanded "What did 'e do to 'er?"

"Jack," the Doctor asked quietly "do you understand?"

"Yeah," Jack murmured, watching Rose carefully. She was like his little sister. Just thinking about what the Master had done to her made her feel sick.

"Ok, good. Jackie, can we talk outside for a minute?" the Doctor asked softly.

Jackie nodded and warily followed him to the hallway.

"It seems that the Master kept calling her 'Rose Tyler', in the same way I do, to hurt her. And now it seems that the way I say it, the way I _use_ it, is associated with pain in Rose's mind. I have no doubt that the Master had that in mind when he began doing it. And now it seems that Rose immediately links it to the physical feeling of intense pain,"

"What do we do to stop it?" Jackie asked, already fearing the answer.

"We…We help her through it. There's nothing else we can do." The Doctor admitted softly, tears welling in his eyes.

**~StormWolf10~**

Later that night, Jackie was asleep- finally reassured that her daughter was safe- and Jack had relocated his old bedroom on the TARDIS to spend the night in. Only the Doctor and Rose were awake, and were sat in Rose's room on the bed, talking.

"So what happens to us now?" Rose asked quietly, shyly.

"We stay here until you feel you've recovered enough to continue travelling," the Doctor replied "if you want to carry on travelling, of course,"

"And what about you?" Rose asked.

"I'll be here with you. I'll wait as long as you want me to," he answered sincerely.

"Are…Are you sure you're ok with that?" she asked nervously.

"Of course I'm sure! I've never been surer of anything in my life, Rose!" the Doctor told her, eyes wide and hands gesturing wildly.

Rose smiled slightly and stifled a giggle. The Doctor watched her carefully for a few moments.

"You know how I feel about you, right?" he asked her quietly.

Rose blushed and nodded.

"I guess you know how I felt too, seein' as you know what I allowed the Master to do when I thought he was you," Rose mumbled.

The Doctor nodded and kissed her on the forehead. He then eased her under the covers as he noticed her eyes beginning to droop.

"I do. Now sleep," the Doctor instructed softly.

"Don't wanna," Rose protested "I'll have nightmares,"

"No you won't. I'll be here to stop them," the Doctor assured her gently.

Then, against his better judgement, he spoke again.

"Rose, I l-"

Soft fingers pressed against his lips, silencing him.

"Not yet. Please, not yet," Rose begged sleepily, although fear was evident in her half-closed eyes "not with the memory of him sayin' it still in my mind."

"Yeah, sorry," the Doctor mumbled, holding back his tears "it can wait."

The Master had ruined everything. The Doctor couldn't even tell Rose how he felt about her without it bringing up memories.

"Soon though, yeah?" Rose continued tiredly "You can tell me soon. I'll be better then,"

He could tell she was almost asleep now, but she continued talking.

"What happens now, Doctor?"

"We work on getting you better," he told her softly "and when you're well enough, we'll make our own memories. Together."

Once he was sure that Rose was asleep, the Doctor finally allowed the tears to fall. They had a long road to recovery ahead of them.


End file.
